• By GARY PERILLOUX
• Advocate business writer
• Published: Oct 10, 2009 - Page: 6B

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An Oregon-based door-maker will get three more years from Louisiana officials to complete a $115 million Winnfield project in bad economic times.

Jeld-Wen Inc. announced in 2006 that it would build a door plant in Winn Parish and hire 75 workers by 2008.

Now, the company won’t open the plant until 2012 at the earliest, a Jeld-Wen executive told the Louisiana Economic Development Corp. on Friday.

Ron Saxton, an executive vice president for external affairs at the privately held firm, said a dreadful housing market has delayed the Winnfield plant. Housing starts of 2.5 million a year when the project was announced plunged to annual rates as low as 500,000 this year and prevent the plant from operating now, he said.

“We just can’t do it,” Saxton said.

“We’ll survive this economy. We’re not going to be filing any bankruptcies. But I’ll be honest with you, it’s a really, really tough time. We’re holding on by our fingernails.”

LEDC officials granted the extension for Jeld-Wen to finish a site where $85 million has been spent and $20 million more is needed, mostly for equipment, before the 75 workers can be hired with an annual payroll of $2.534 million.

Jeld-Wen now must hit those targets by 2012 and maintain them a year longer to qualify for state economic development aid of $750,000 for a road and water and sewer services at the site.

Louisiana also committed $3.19 million in Enterprise Zone and other state incentives to the project.

In another matter, the LED board agreed to allow Stonehenge Capital Co. LLC to manage a state venture capital fund for two more years.

Governed by gubernatorial appointees, LEDC oversees state investments aimed at stimulating the economy. Its Louisiana Growth Fund LLC has had Stonehenge oversight since 1997 in a contract that had been due to expire Nov. 1.

LEDC board member Louis Reine questioned why a $5 million investment in the venture fund had returned $2.2 million in cash to the state with a residual value of $2.1 million.

“That’s 4.3 (million dollars)?” Reine asked, wondering why the net value was upside-down for the fund that includes such ventures as Golfballs.com.

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